'The X Factor' U.S. 2013 spoilers: Top 16 acts, judges' mentor categories & more

On Sept. 11, 2013, jorkvstptb.blogspot.com revealed spoilers for "The X Factor" U.S.'s third season. The information has since been deleted from the original source, but it was picked up by Idol Forums and International Business Times.

This information is unconfirmed, and jorkvstptb.blogspot.com has not been completely reliable about posting correct "X Factor" spoilers in the past. So take the information for whatever you think it's worth.

WARNING! SPOILER ALERT! Do not read any further if you don't want to know about possible spoilers.

As previously reported, "The X Factor" U.S. eliminated "boot camp" and "judges' houses" in 2013. Therefore, the show went straight from narrowing down 200 contestant acts to 40 acts. These 40 acts were then narrowed down to 24 acts, and then to 16 acts, in episodes that were taped at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles on Sept. 8 and Sept. 9, 2013. These shows were free and open to the public, which is why the spoiler information could have easily been leaked. The air dates for these episodes are to be announced.

The categories assigned for each judge to mentor in 2013 are as follows:

• Girls (female solo singers ages 16 to 24), mentored by Demi Lovato
• Boys (male solo singers ages 16 to 24), mentored by Paulina Rubio
• Over 25s (solo singers ages 25 and over), mentored by Kelly Rowland
• Groups, mentored by Simon Cowell

In an interview with Yahoo! Music's Reality Rocks, Cowell talked a little bit about a new format to the show: Four-Chair Challenge, which involved 10 contestants from each category being narrowed down to four contestants in each category. The 10 contestants from each category performed for the judges, and the judge mentoring that category chose the contestants who would occupy four chairs on stage. However, during the Four-Chair Challenge, the judges were allowed to change their minds by switching in and switching out contestants from their mentor categories. In other words, contestants occupying any of the four chairs could be eliminated by being replaced by other contestants in the same category. After all 10 contestants from a category performed, the four contestant acts who remained in the chairs were the "real" final four in that category.

This is the second year in a row that Cowell is mentoring the Groups category.

Based on these spoilers, "The X Factor" will once again have manufactured groups that were formed on the show by putting rejected solo contestants in the same group.

This is how One Direction and Little Mix were formed on "The X Factor" U.K. and how Fifth Harmony was formed on "The X Factor" U.S.

One Direction came in third place on "The X Factor U.K. in 2010. Little Mix was the winner of "The X Factor" UK. in 2011 and was the first group to win on "The X Factor" U.K. Fifth Harmony came in third place on "The X Factor" U.S. in 2012. All three groups are signed to Syco Music, the record company co-owned by Cowell and Sony Music.

Also of note to "X Factor" viewers, two contestants in the Over 25s category in 2013 have auditioned for the show in the past.

Jeffrey Adam Gutt (who was controversially eliminated at "The X Factor" U.S. boot camp in 2012) has made it to the Top 16 in 2013, according to the spoilers. In an October 2012 telephone conference call with journalists, Cowell admitted that Gutt's elimination was the "biggest mistake" that the show's judges made that year.

In addition, James Kenney (who was eliminated from "X Factor" U.S. judges' houses in 2011) has made it to the Top 16 in 2013, according to the spoilers.

Here are the Top 40 contestant acts on "The X Factor" U.S. in 2013, according to the spoilers. The Top 16 are asterisked and are in bold type.

Girls (female solo singers ages 16 to 24), mentored by Demi Lovato

1. Khaya Cohen*
2. Danielle "Danie" Geimer*
3. Ellona Santiago*
4. Rion Paige*
5. Rylie Brown
6. Bree Randall
7. Hannah Johnson [UPDATE: This spoiler was incorrect. Primrose Martin was actually in the Top 10.]
8. Ashly Williams
9. Jamie Pineda
10. Simone Torres

Boys (male solo singers ages 16 to 24), mentored by Paulina Rubio

1. Carlos Guevara*
2. Josh Levi*
3. Carlito Olivero*
4. Tim Olstad*
5. Stone Martin
6. Al Calderon
7. Isaac Tauaefa
8. Timmy Thames
9. Chase Goehring
10. Isaiah Alston

Over 25s (solo singers ages 25 and over), mentored by Kelly Rowland

1. Jeffrey Adam Gutt*
2. James Kenney*
3. Lillie McCloud*
4. Rachel Potter*
5. Victoria Carriger
6. Kristine Mirelle
7. Lorie Moore
8. Jeff Brinkman
9. Allison Davis
10. Denny Smith

Groups, mentored by Simon Cowell

1. Alex & Sierra*
2. Restless Road* (country group formed on "The X Factor" with former solo contestants Andrew Scholz, Colton Pack and Zach Beeken)
3. Roxxy Montana*
4. Sweet Suspense* (pop group formed on "The X Factor" with former solo contestants Celine Polenghi, Millie Thrasher and Summer Reign)
5. Forever in Your Mind (pop group formed on "The X Factor" with former solo contestants Emery Kelly, Jon Klaasen and Ricky Garcia)
6. Girls United
7. Wild Thingz
8. Good News
9. Glamour
10. Yellow House Canyon

*Selected for live episodes.